3 Buffalo Sabres prospects who shined in Game 1 of Prospects Challenge

The Buffalo Sabres collectively put together an excellent effort last night, but who rose above the others to deliver a stellar Game 1?

On Friday night, Matt Savoie led the way in goal scoring with a pair of wild goals, one of which you must see to believe. Savoie, who seemed to have chemistry issues with WHL teammate Zach Benson early, got it together, and the two went on to enjoy a solid Game 1.

But Savoie, with his never-say-die approach, wasn’t the only player who jumped out. Below, there are three more prospects whose respective performances deserve recognition. Not everyone listed below made a ton of jaw-dropping plays, and one of the players mentioned simply made the list because of the little things that they did.

Buffalo Sabres prospects who shined vs. Canadiens

1 – Nikita Novikov

When Nikita Novikov broke up what would have been  a one-on-one against goaltender Scott Ratzlaff, I muttered to myself, “Shades of Mattias Samuelsson.” Of course, it will be a minute before the former 188th overall pick is lining up in the same rotation as Samuelsson, but Novikov broke up several plays defensively, and he even delivered the occasional big hit.

Novikov, seeing his first live game action since he signed with the Buffalo Sabres earlier this calendar year, passed his initial test in the North American game. While he will undoubtedly have an adjustment period, Novikov showed us flashes that he could adjust to the style quickly.

2 – Zach Benson

With Zach Benson, it was the little things that stuck out at me. It took him and Matt Savoie at least a period to build adequate chemistry, but it improved throughout the contest. In one instance, Benson made an incredible pass across the ice to Savoie that looked more like a quarterback hitting a receiver at the corner of the end zone.

You know what happened, as Savoie jumped, batted the puck down, put it onto his stick, and found twine. Benson also played a sound defensive game, once getting a stick on the puck later on in the contest and denying a would-be shot on goal that Ratzlaff would have had a tough time stopping.

3 – Isak Rosen

Isak Rosen will definitely raise eyebrows after putting together arguably the best game of all the Buffalo Sabres prospects. Sure, Matt Savoie led the way with a pair of sensational goals, but Rosen helped get the scoring going when he hit Mats Lindgren on a soft feed to tie the game at one.

Rosen’s skating was on full display, and it seemed as though Montreal never had an answer for him. He also helped close out the scoring on what was an incredible assist to Jiri Kulich in the circle.

Through the first two rounds of the 2023 Calder Cup Playoffs, Rosen and Kulich put on quite a highlight reel, even if it cooled during the Conference Finals. But as you can see, those highlight reel moments will likely continue into this season, which will make Rochester Americans hockey must-see television.

Once again, it was a great collective effort from Novikov, Benson, Rosen, and the rest of the Buffalo Sabres. With such an incredible prospects pool, look for another strong showing to occur tonight when the Blue and Gold face the New Jersey Devils at 7 p.m.